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Geek Culture / Now THIS guy is a survivor!

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Matt Rock
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Posted: 12th Feb 2007 23:37
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This guy went skydiving, and after his two parachutes failed to open, he free-fell over 2 miles (14,000 ft.) to his death... or so he and his skydiving partner thought. After saying "I'm dead, bye" into his helmet cam, a chilly and rather dull farewell to his friends and family, he crashed into a large blackberry bush.



And lived.


"In an interstellar burst, I'm back to save the universe"
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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 00:00
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Lucky guy, I bet he was extremely relieved to find that he was still alive.

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CattleRustler
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 00:06
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Quote: "...as he fell toward Earth and an almost-certain death at hundreds of miles per hour..."


side question:
dont we (humans) experience a terminal velocity of about 120 mph when free falling thru air?

(Not that 120 wouldnt kill, I am just curious)

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Thraxas
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 00:28 Edited at: 13th Feb 2007 00:33
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Quote: "dont we (humans) experience a terminal velocity of about 120 mph when free falling thru air?"


Yes terminal velocity is about 120 mph for a skydiver... I'm amazed he only suffered a collapsed lung and broken ankle...


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Peter H
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 00:32
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it is dependent on the drag, so if he splayed himself out horizontally he'd go faster than if he pulled his arms in and "dove" straight down.

One man, one lawnmower, plenty of angry groundhogs.
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Benjamin
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 00:34
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Quote: "it is dependent on the drag, so if he splayed himself out horizontally he'd go faster than if he pulled his arms in and "dove" straight down."

Haven't you got that backwards? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminal_velocity

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Thraxas
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 00:35 Edited at: 13th Feb 2007 00:36
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Quote: "it is dependent on the drag, so if he splayed himself out horizontally he'd go faster than if he pulled his arms in and "dove" straight down.
"


surely he would go slower if he splayed out his body and faster if he pulled his arms in...

[edit]you beat me to it Benjamin[/edit]


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LD52
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 00:43
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yay 1 more person lives
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Peter H
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 01:25 Edited at: 13th Feb 2007 01:25
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yes, i got it backwards.

i was thinking one thing and typing another lol. (that's what a 3 hour physics lab does to you)

One man, one lawnmower, plenty of angry groundhogs.
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Robin
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 08:26
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http://break.com/index/skydiver_survives_5000_foot_freefall.html

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Wiggett
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 09:08
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yeah this was on the news here last night, they said he reached 130kmph, which I thought sounded high but I haven't bothered working out how that relates to the 9.8 metres per second law, but I'm sure channel 9 haven't stooped that low yet.

Also you know why he survived? cause he is Australian

also cause the bushes he landed in were thick enough to cushion the impact somewhat. VERY LUCKY! but I could have though to fa better last phrase than that, seeing as he had a whole 10 seconds between saying it and hitting the ground.

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Dave J
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 13:32
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It's the acceleration due to gravity that's 9.8 m/s/s (which actually decreases the further you get from the ground), but this doesn't take into account wind resistance and drag so it's hard to work out mathematically exactly what speed he actually reached (all they can do is estimate). Though, since terminal velocity is 195kph, it seems entirely possible he reached 130kph.


"Computers are useless, they can only give you answers."
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Fallout
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 13:43
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You all seem to neglect to mention that his parachute was actually open, albeit, knackered! There's a slight different between plummeting to earth unhindered and having 40 square meters (random guess) of parachute material (properly open or not) slowing your fall.

Still amazing survival story, but the claims he was going at 100mph are crap. Watch the vid ... he has half a collapsed parachute. He's probably doing 50mph. Still bloody amazing, don't get me wrong ... but it's not a story of a man who plummeted to earth at terminal velocity and survived because of a bush. The partially open parachute (a device used to slow descent! ) might've been of some help.


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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 15:21
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It certainly sounds more spectacular if you ignore the half deployed chute A partial malfunction and a resulting injury is barely newsworthy, but surviving God's Full Gravitational Wrath head on sure is.


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Fallout
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 16:15
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Turns out he did have some luck. He tried to cut his shoot away when it failed, but he couldn't. So he then tried to deploy his reserve shoot and the cord came away in his hand. Now personally, I think he's lucky he couldn't cut his main shoot away, otherwise when the reserve failed, he definitely would've been plummeting to earth at terminal velocity.


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Sunflash
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 18:32
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See guys, skydiving is safe! Despite all the hype going along...
Finally the truth comes out, we can survive huge free falls! J/k

Actually, the first time I read it, it sounded very hoaky, but I guess its legit... who wants to go skydiving?

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Screwed Over
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 18:56
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i'll go skydiving with you sunflash if i get to pack your chute lol, j/k, amazing story, makes me want to go try it for myself


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Silvester
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 20:17
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Wait,

Doesnt falling from that height kill you before you even hit the ground?i mean,you'd get a hearth attack and your pants will be brown and yellow inmediantly!

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Kentaree
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 20:29
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No, because then skydiving wouldn't be a sport in the first place cos everyone would have heartattacks before they managed to open their shutes.

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Silvester
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 20:46
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hmm,they teach me at school you'd die before you hit the ground.

I knew school was dumb!

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Agent Dink
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 21:22
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My brother almost went skydiving with his band a few months back. Then the band he was in broke up, now they don't really associate with each other anymore

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Phlum
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 21:30
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Pod, what happened to your sig?

Man, that must have beeen a preeeeeeeeeeeeeettty scary fall. But then again, that always happens to me on Crash Boom Bang. My 'chute fails.

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Silvester
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Posted: 13th Feb 2007 21:53
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You mean my avatar?

My bandhwith ran out...

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Dr Manette
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 00:54
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First thing that guy said when he got up:

"Dude................ let's go again!!!"

Seriously, an awesome story. If he had been a few feet off.... well the story would be completely different. And the video probably wouldn't be sitting out there yet. That man is the luckiest person ever.

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Sunflash
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 01:02 Edited at: 14th Feb 2007 01:03
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And thus, a new sport is born
The only trick i finding a good thick patch of blackberries...


Quote: "i'll go skydiving with you sunflash if i get to pack your chute"


Awesome!! Saves me the work

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Venge
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 01:06
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if you watch the video you see he's over water for quite a while, and only manages to get over the shore in the last few thousand feet..

if he'd hit the water ....
splat

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Matt Rock
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 02:22
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Yep, hitting water at that speed is like hitting pavement. Makes me wonder how bushes (which are seemingly harder than water, to a lamen like me anyway) could have broke the fall as much as they did.


"In an interstellar burst, I'm back to save the universe"
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Peter H
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 02:23
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maybe the berries were ripe and squishy.

One man, one lawnmower, plenty of angry groundhogs.
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Matt Rock
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 02:33
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So his crash-landing was not only safe, but delicious!


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Wiggett
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 02:46 Edited at: 14th Feb 2007 02:47
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haha blueberry (or was it black berry, ohwell some sort of berry) bushes are spikey, with thorns. but its like landing on pillows compared to hard salty water. The bushes can bend enough to slow down his speed when he hits. Water doesn't do that with something that speed, unless it's sharp and pointy, try it yourself at a diving pool, do a pin drop dive, then do a belly whacker. see what I mean. I'm surprised after falling that distance the bushes he hit were actually enough to soften the fall, but I've seen the tape, he really does fall for ages spinning around (which had to have made him pass out) then he smacks the ground, the camera stays active (which is amazing as well, an impact like that would normally jolt a camer aout of operation). You even see his mate land a few metres away and then run up to him asking him if he is ok.... i'd say that was a stupid thing to say affter seeing him crash but he was ok

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Saikoro
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 05:22
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Maybe a guy was falling like that eating chocolate and he landed in a peanut butter bush and thats how peanut butter cups were invented.


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Steve J
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Posted: 14th Feb 2007 06:20
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@saikoro: nop! Two guys crashed into each other and got peanut butter on ones chocolate and chocolate on ones peanut butter, and officer reeses tasted it and shot both of them to make the delicious buttery goodness.

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Matt Rock
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Posted: 16th Feb 2007 22:56
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That wacky Officer Reese, he sure was a crooked cop

I'm wondering if maybe his passing out played a role in his survival somehow. I know that (or at least I've heard that) if you're asleep in a car when you have an accident, you're less likely to get injured... maybe this is the same effect somehow?


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GatorHex
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Posted: 17th Feb 2007 01:50 Edited at: 17th Feb 2007 01:57
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Its the usual news hype to say both parachutes failed, his parachute was open!

It just wasn't performing with 100% tollerance and he went a bit fater than normal

Believe it or not there are lots of example of falling but not dieing http://www.greenharbor.com/fffolder/ffallers.html

Don't try it at home kids, I jumped of just a garage roof and broke a foot

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